Duration of compulsory education in Denmark
Denmark: Duration of compulsory education was 10 years in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
10 years
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
86th
of 205 countries
All-time high
10 years
in 2010
All-time low
9 years
in 1998
Years of data
28
1998–2025
Duration of compulsory education in Denmark, 1998–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2025, duration of compulsory education in Denmark stood at 10 years. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
The figure is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, duration of compulsory education in Denmark peaked at 10 years in 2010 and was at its lowest, 9 years, in 1998.
Denmark ranks 86th of 205 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
Duration of compulsory education in Denmark, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 9 years | — |
| 1999 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 2011 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 10 years | +0.0% |
Denmark compared with similar countries
- Denmark's 10 years is below the median for high income countries, which is 11 years, 91% of the median. (77 countries reporting)
- Denmark's 10 years is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 10 years, 1.0× the median. (53 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 9 years | 9 years | 9 years | 2 |
| 2000s | 9 years | 9 years | 9 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 10 years | 10 years | 10 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 10 years | 10 years | 10 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Denmark
- 86 Algeria 10 years compare
- 86 Andorra 10 years compare
- 86 Angola 10 years compare
- 86 Burkina Faso 10 years compare
- 86 Canada 10 years compare
- 86 Cape Verde 10 years compare
- 86 Central African Republic 10 years compare
- 86 Chad 10 years compare
- 86 Congo 10 years compare
- 86 Cote d'Ivoire 10 years compare
- 86 Cyprus 10 years compare
- 86 Czechia 10 years compare
- 86 Djibouti 10 years compare
- 86 Gabon 10 years compare
- 86 Greece 10 years compare
- 86 Iceland 10 years compare
- 86 Ireland 10 years compare
- 86 Jordan 10 years compare
- 86 Kyrgyzstan 10 years compare
- 86 Lebanon 10 years compare
- 86 Macao 10 years compare
- 86 Moldova 10 years compare
- 86 New Zealand 10 years compare
- 86 Norway 10 years compare
- 86 Oman 10 years compare
- 86 Palestine 10 years compare
- 86 Romania 10 years compare
- 86 Saint Lucia 10 years compare
- 86 San Marino 10 years compare
- 86 Spain 10 years compare
- 86 Sweden 10 years compare
- 86 Togo 10 years compare
- 86 Vietnam 10 years compare
More education data for Denmark
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 50,935 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 2,888 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 94,481 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 88,072 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 522,143 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 432,238 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.8558 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0723 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is duration of compulsory education in Denmark?
- Duration of compulsory education in Denmark was 10 years in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest duration of compulsory education recorded in Denmark?
- The highest recorded value was 10 years in 2010.
- What is the lowest duration of compulsory education recorded in Denmark?
- The lowest recorded value was 9 years in 1998.
- How does Denmark rank for duration of compulsory education?
- Denmark ranks 86th out of 205 countries with data for 2025.
- Is duration of compulsory education rising or falling in Denmark?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Denmark data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Duration of compulsory education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The number of years of compulsory education is based on students starting at the earliest entrance age, studying full-time, and advancing without grade repetition or skipping.